


Maddening

by orphan_account



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Suicide Squad (2016)
Genre: Belle Reve, Belle Reve Penitentiary, Blackmail, Crimes & Criminals, Drugs, F/F, Flowers, Fluff, Gymnastics, Harley thinks the joker is dead, Imprisonment, Killing, Murder, Plants, Post-Suicide Squad (2016), Psychologists & Psychiatrists, Suicide Squad, Task Force X, canon - except that the Joker didn't come to rescue Harley, remind me of any tags i forgot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:08:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21888694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Poison Ivy owns a secret lethal weapon. The Batman knows that there is only one way to stop Ivy from making any damage. Harley Quinn is needed in this mission, so he seeks Amanda Waller and the task force x.
Relationships: Pamela Isley/Harleen Quinzel
Comments: 24
Kudos: 242





	1. Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you already read this chapter, i recommend you read it again, because i changed everything.  
> also, i altered the title, because Belle Reve was a ridiculous one. I stole it from a previous work of mine that i deleted because i wouldn't follow through with it. I'm currently working on chapter 4, and so far so good. we're almost there, folks!

“Could you please bring a Bollinger to the table…” She extended her hand to turn a piece of wood. “…number twenty seven.” The waiter nodded and collected their menus before departing to Amanda Waller’s ‘thank you’.

She propped both her elbows on the table, raising her head to rest it on her laced hands, regarding Batman with an equally serious gaze. Curiosity lingered in his stare; her trained eyes recognized it. _Surely you can’t afford a Bollinger._

“You arranged this conversation. You’re the one to pay the bill.” She explained without moving from her position.

“Fair enough.” He answered, and a tint of mirth could be heard, but his gloomy expression remained the same.

“There has been a situation in Gotham City.” He started, uselessly. His deep voice was collected to avoid any eavesdropping, so Waller had to lean in to understand what he was saying.

“Poison Ivy has created an acid capable of killing a grown man in a matter of seconds.” Straight to the point; as Waller knew him. “My team and I are currently working to find data about previous use of this acid.”

“How did you find out about Ivy?” She asked him.

“There is a video.” He answered, succinct.

“And what has this got to do with my task force?” Waller pursed her lips, picturing the outcomes of this mission.

“I’m not happy to seek assistance from your suicidal squad, but we have to act fast before she contaminates the Gotham canal point and the consequences get out of control.”

“And what do I win out of this?” She asked him, finally. Waller could say that Batman had expected this question, because he reached under the table and pulled out a briefcase, placing it in front of her.

She side-eyed him askingly, but opened the briefcase to find countless Benjamin Franklins staring back at her and she couldn’t help but to smile at the offer.

“Now you’re speaking my language.” She closed the briefcase with a click. “What do you need, Batman?” She asked him, propping her head on her laced hands once again. He waited a few moments, regarding Waller with an icy stare before he finally proclaimed himself again.

“Harley Quinn.”


	2. Chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley is taken out of her cell, after weeks of being confined, and she gets to learn what the new mission is about.

“Hey hot stuff, it’s time for the meal.” The guard approached her cell with a grey tray of food which had divisions to separate the solid from the liquid.

The blonde eyed Griggs over the rim of her coffee cup, not moving from her cross-legged position on the bed.

His eyes were searching, darting around quickly, analyzing her. He seemed more cautious of Harley now that he had had an unexpected meeting with the Joker. Griggs made less jokes and he had stopped with some of the funny stuff, but for the rest he was still the same asshole.

Harley gently placed the cup on a saucer beside her, then, she took both and set them on a wooden table next to the coffee machine. Harley glanced at the guard, he still hadn’t moved and was holding the tray next to the cell. She approached Griggs and he turned the platter ninety degrees for it to pass through the bars. A plastic involving the tray prevented the food from falling down.

Harley took it and threw it on her provisory bed to eat later, maybe at noon. She waltzed to the espresso machine, humming a pop tune from some generic singer, and pressed the button where it was written Capuccino. The machine started to vibrate, but before the coffee could touch porcelain she noticed that Griggs was still standing by the cell.

“You’re not gonna eat it?” He asked her, gesturing to the tray on the bed.

“Do I have ta?” She replied with a question.

He leaned in, looking around him to check if any guard was watching too closely. Harley abandoned the cup and meandered to the guard, curious to listen to what he had to say. She approached her ear to his mouth and hoped that he didn’t scream.

“You’re going on a mission soon, blondie. I hear you’ll be an important part in it.” He whispered to Harley. “Your crazy ass will hopefully get killed this time.” He winked at her and turned to go. “If you don’t eat now, you won’t get to eat later!” The gates’ metal door on the exit dragged with a piercing sound, which made the silence that came after even more pointed.

Harley retreated and sat on her bed, drawing and crossing her legs.

She felt rather lonely. It was as if they were trying to make the task force go insane by isolating them, that way they were less careful and more dangerous.

Her only companions here were the guards that worked in shifts to supervise her. They waited for her to do something nasty to point their guns at her head as if she was an animal to be tamed. These guards didn’t talk to her, maybe they weren’t supposed to, but Harley wondered how Waller had considered Griggs to be more qualified than them. The jester spent part of her time looking at these guards’s faces and they seemed downright friendlier than Griggs.

Maybe that’s why they were told not to talk to Harley, they were tractable.

She doesn’t have the ability to disarm five men bigger than her, but she surely could deceive people with words. _That_ she could do.

The book that they had allowed her to keep was very helpful though, with the loneliness and all that jazz.

A long long time ago Harley used to read endless encyclopedias and books about intricate criminal minds. She would eat those words and devour the knowledge, as she was quite young. As of late she usually reads comics, if she reads at all.

They had let her choose a book amongst a small collection. She had seen the book ‘Between the sheets’ and that Amy Winehouse song immediately started playing in her head. She thought that the name was also similar to ‘Between the shits’, so she giggled and took it to her cell. She was trapped in a box; she didn’t have much to do, but gladly, the book was proving to be an interesting pastime.

Suddenly she was woken from her reverie when loud steps echoed within the place. High heels touching the ground and Harley raised her head to follow the sound.

“Hey devil lady! I’ve missed ya.” Harley’s high-pitched voice cut through the morning.

Amanda Waller walked slowly on a separated aisle, some meters higher than the floor Harley was at; in a place that looked like a balcony, but without a splendorous view, and it was protected by a metal grid, as if to keep children from falling.

Waller stopped on her tracks.

There was something weird. Her face was moving in a strange way. The corners of her lips were raising. Amanda Waller never smiled. But she did. And Harley was one of the few privileged to see the feat.

Harley rose from her bed and moved to a corner of her cell, where she would be closer to the other woman. She neared the icy bars, but didn’t touch them.

“You have a mission, Quinn. Get ready.” The smile never failed her lips. She warned the jester about another suicidal mission as if she had just received a Christmas present and wanted to share it with Harley.

Goosebumps followed the line of the blonde’s spine until they arrived at the nape of her neck.

Steps sounded and Amanda Waller was gone, and Harley was left standing in her lone cell once again.

Soon enough, she heard different footsteps, this time more muffled. Several male voices could be detected.

“Open up the gates!”

“Sector C, this is not a slumber party, scumbags!”

“Bravo 14, open perimeter fence.”

She rolled up the orange sleeves and prepared herself, standing in a stance that she had seen in some karate movie, holding both her closed fists in front of her to fight the men that would open her cell now. Griggs stepped to the front.

“You won’t pull tricks on me this time, right hotness?” He asked her. Leaning in, looking very different from earlier, Griggs sure had got bolstered by his crew of guards.

“What’s it matta? I’ll end up on the floor anyway.” Harley stated.

Griggs didn’t reply and opened the door to the cell with several other guards behind him. As soon as they stepped in they aimed their guns at her. The red dots that colored her body reminded her of the time as a child when she had chickenpox, the first week had been just like this.

She straightened her back and showed both her hand’s palms to them like a criminal caught by the police. “Aw… C’mon, pals, this hurts my feelings.” They approached her cautiously, one foot after the other. She hoped that they didn’t electrocute her this time, as thrilling as it usually was she wasn’t in the mood for it.

Griggs rushed to her and caught her hands to put them in a handcuff. She didn’t struggle, she hardly moved. The guards lowered their guns and Griggs guided her outside the cell. They walked to the gates, which opened immediately this time. The door made a piercing sound and they were out of the room she had been stuck for the past few weeks. She let out a long sigh.

She never saw this part of the building. The only time that she got out of that cage was when she had to pee; two guards escorted her to a separate room that was absolutely suffocating, it didn’t have windows, and it smelled really bad, good thing that she had learned in college how to hold her breath for at least a minute.

She had a filter with endless water in the cell, so she didn’t have to get out to keep herself hydrated. The cage was big enough that she could stretch her legs and do some cartwheels, but it wasn’t the same as being free; but somehow Arkham could be even worse than this, so she was… _glad_... in a way.

Harley and the guards descended into darkness, dim lamps shone on the low ceiling, she could see almost nothing. When they reached a place that was better illuminated, she squeezed her eyes to block the light, as her dilated pupils were taking time to adjust to the environment brightness.

The room slowly revealed itself to be the corridor that she went through a couple of weeks ago, where they had put the explosive device on her neck. There was the same chair resting on a wall, waiting for her to take a seat. One guard moved to get it and put it in front of her, she willingly sat on the chair and Griggs tied her right hand to the strap in the armrest. Then, he unlocked the cuffs, that way her left hand was free to move.

“Y’all are going soft on the edges. Who would’ve thought?” Harley exclaimed. “Y’know… I could do many things with one free hand…” She ventured, dragging out the phrase.

“Yeah, like a handjob.” Griggs replied with a slight chuckle. He caught her free hand and tied it to the other strap.

“I’m right handed, perv!” Harley snarled to him. Griggs glanced at her with mirth while he restrained her head with more straps, then he moved down, fastening something through her torso that worked like a safety belt.

“Easy, Harley. I’m not the one tied to a chair right now.” He reminded her and concluded the imprisonment with a pat on her shoulder. The guards guided the chair through the aisle.

Amanda Waller had slackened her grip. It was as if the guards didn’t even want to hurt Harley. They didn’t douse her with medication, they didn’t electrocute her, she was still awake. Maybe Waller had got to trust the squad more after their last mission, but Harley was still skepticall; sure, the squad had rocked, but Amanda was known to be quite unyielding, so Harley hadn’t thought that she would give them a break after they had completed only their first mission.

The Sun touched her face making her bubble blue eyes even brighter, as they reflect the star’s light.

“You ain’t gonna tell us what this is about.” A male voice stated to the guards walking alongside their chairs.

Harley turned her head as much as she could to see the face of the man who had just spoken. Oh, she had missed her friends; these past weeks she had been desperate for anyone she could talk to. _Really_ talk to, not those senseless chit chats she had with Griggs, or those empty phrases that she let out making every guard think she was crazy. And she was, indeed, crazy. She was hearing Harleen again, such a quick path to become insane, listening to the voice of reason.

Their chairs were pushed until the criminals were side by side, Croc was the only standing up, still bound.

Harley started to sniff while the guards untied them. Deadshot turned to look at her.

“Wipe those tears, dollface. Waller won’t get it.” He half smiled to Harley, trying to cheer her up. He was a softy at heart, Harley knew it. As soon as she was free she dried her tears on the orange prison shirt.

She took a deep breath. It was good to breathe pure air. 

Harley looked down at her hands to see that she skin was as white as flour, maybe she could get a tan while they were in this new mission.

Men and women clad in military clothes came and went maintaining a respectable distance from the squad; it looked as if there was a force field around them.

There were chests on the floor, and inside them there were the same clothes from last mission. Harley examined the red and blue pantie holding it at arm length before smelling it. She cringed and shoved the garment deep down in the trunk. Great, they didn’t wash clothes here; she could’ve done it, if they only let her out of her cell. Fortunately, she had a pair of jeans shorts tucked away somewhere here. She finished clothing, the words ‘Daddy’s lil monster stretched over her bust, her fishnet stockings barely covering her tattoos, she was feeling peachy. She got a pack of bubblegum and started chewing. Harley took the baseball bat from the trunk and turned around to meet the other criminals.

“Are you pussies ready to kick some asses?” The gum popped and painted her lips pink before she got it inside her mouth once more.

”Hell yeah! Easy peasy, clown gal.” Boomer replied in his thick Australian accent.

The squad was much calmer this time around; it seemed as if the privileges they had received from the last task had eased them, gave them something to do, so they didn’t have to vent their anger by injuring guards. As soon as they were all clothed and the chairs were taken away Flag came up from apparently nowhere and started shouting in their faces.

“Listen up! Since my boss couldn’t replace me for this mission, you are stuck with me again.” He receded. “Here’s what’s going on,” He looked down at his tablet and pressed at the touchscreen, Flag raised it to them so they could see the video.

The clip that appeared looked as if it was filmed by security cameras of the street. It had very bad quality, so they didn’t recognize anything at first. Harley could see that it was night, the moon was very low in the sky, and the camera was angled in a way that captured it. There were trees and bushes, it was a video of Robinson Park; oh, Harley recognized this specific place, it was near one of Ivy’s hideout.

A man appeared on the screen, he was wearing a grey suit, but his steps weren’t so sure, he wandered mindlessly, slowly, as if he was waiting for someone to show up, or he just liked going for a walk in the middle of the night, except no man in Gotham went for a walk in the middle of the night without purpose.

Suddenly, a tuff of grass moved until there was a black hole in the ground, seemingly the door to a secret passage. The man noticed the hole and approached it; looking down he realized that the hole was empty and tuned to go, weird things happened in Gotham anyway. But before he could give a second step, the man opened his mouth, seemingly shouting, the desperation etched into his eyes, his skin started going flaccid and suddenly he was not a man anymore, he had putrefied, the only thing left in his place was a green puddle on the floor. Flowers started to grow in a formidable speed, orchids, roses, begonias, the green liquid had been absorbed by the earth, and the man was no more a puddle, now he was the earth itself, turned into fertilizer.

Before they could express their thoughts on the video a green hand came out of the hole blending in with the grass. Harley raised her eyebrows and held back her tongue. The woman in the video was now in full sight, her vibrant red hair stood out and the squad made noises of recognition.

Poison Ivy stood looking at the plants that were growing ridiculously fast before she went to caress their thin petals with impossible gentleness. She turned to get back to where she had come from and the camera captured a unusual big smile on her face, Harley was familiar with it, and it was a sight to behold. The video stopped right there, with the blissful smile etched into Poison Ivy’s face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 5 pages guys, i took about two weeks to write this, it was worth it. Share your thoughts!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley is a tad down because of their new task. Deadshot helps her with it.

With the baseball bat hanging loosely over her shoulders, Harley strolled so slowly that she almost halted to a stop. After waking for a while, the sound of her dragging feet became little more than background noise for the rest of the squad.

From time to time, Flag had to shout for Harley to keep up with them, he had an extra eye on the jester since she had escaped with the Joker in the last mission. Glad that wacko was dead.

“Are you deaf? I am a second away from exploding you brain. Walk faster!”

“Maybe if you’d let me talk ta yer boss…”

“What did you say?” Flag stopped and turned around. His narrowed eyes immediately landing on Harley.

The jester took a deep breath, and started stomping her feet towards him. “I said that----

“Harley!” Deadshot chimed in. The call was enough to stop the jester on her tracks. Harley looked at him askingly and he simply shook his head.

 _Yeah, yeah, I know; it’s not worth it, blah blah blah._ Despite her thoughts, Harley sighed and took his silent advice, setting herself beside Deadshot, walking alongside him. Flag took this quite nicely, huffing slightly before turning back around, guiding them through Gotham City.

 _It must be around seven._ Harley mused, looking at the darkish blue sky. The Sun still graced Gotham somewhere behind those buildings that towered over them.

The city was quite eerie this evening. The streets were empty, and Harley wondered if it was just a quiet night, or if people didn’t dare to walk in a street with wanted criminals, murderers, and famous personalities of the Gotham daily journal, usually first page. _Batman this, Batman that…_

Harley sighed, her shoulders slumping.

“You’ll help me with this one, right?” She whispered hopefully to the man walking beside her.

But before he could answer a head popped in between them, and Harley flinched, started.

“Y’all sneaky lil’… plannin’ to get out, hu?” Boomerang put both his arms around them.

“None of ya business, Aussie.” Harley took one of his fingers between her thumb and her pointer and threw his hand away, pursing her lips in disgust.

“If you don’t take that hand out of there in the next ten seconds, I swear I’ll shoot you. No goddamn bomb in my neck will stop me.” Deadshot faced Boomer, and stared at him until he got his hand off Floyd’s shoulder and walked a few steps back, a smirk on his lips.

Harley and Floyd gathered together and continued to walk, as if nobody had interrupted them. Flag hadn’t noticed the bickering behind him.

Harley looked at Deadshott expectantly and nudged him slightly with her baseball bat.

“I got your back if you got mine.” He shot her a sidelong glance. Harley squealed, and bounced up and down before tiptoeing to give him a kiss on the cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is super short, but the inspiration was running kinda low the last week. Anyway... here it is.


	4. Chapter 4

“Waaaaaiiit!!!!” Harley screeched, dropping her bat onto the floor unceremoniously; it made a dry sound hitting the ground.

“What is it now?”

Harley ignored Flag’s question and crouched down in front of Croc, aiming for his feet.

“Hey!” Still squat on her haunches, she called his attention angrily.

Croc looked down to see the white-painted face turned to him; and a little, trembling, ball of furry on her hands.

The blonde stood up on wobbly legs, putting a hand on Croc’s shoulder to balance her stagger. He growled menacingly at her, forcing Harley to slowly remove her hand and bend slightly backwards, looking impossibly offended with her creased eyebrows.

“Ya almost made puddin’ a’ my friend here.” Harley warned Croc indignantly; twisting her body so that the trembling creature on her hands would be somewhat protected from him.

Croc made no intention of moving, so Harley turned around and started strolling back to her previous place. “Watch where yer going, bru---- aah!”

Harley shook her hands frantically, causing the squirrel to fall to the ground and immediately sprint as far away from the blonde as it could. Then, she brought one thumb to her mouth and began sucking in the blood with a pained whine.

At this, Deadshot snorted and Flag half smiled at the clown.

“Not funny, guys.” She chided the squad with a roll of her eyes and the giggling rang even louder.

“Very funny.” Like a magnet compass, Harley’s head turned to Croc at the sound of his rough voice and her brows furrowed, confused. Harley stuck out her blood-red tongue to him and found her baseball bat on the floor all the while cursing the ungrateful squirrel under her breath.

“Moving on!” Flag called unnecessarily from the frontline, and they began striding again through the Gotham streets; a lighter mood settling upon them.

It was good to be back in Gotham, Harley mused. She looked around to the towering buildings and litter scattered around everywhere. In this particular area of Gotham there were a few houses though, her forehead creased. All of the low windows were boarded up. Now and then, pairs of curious eyes surfaced from the narrow slits between the wooden planks only to disappear into darkness soon after; like flickering flashlights.

“Gee, they must be real scared of us, huh?” She wondered quietly, bowing her head in sudden shame.

Usually, she was thrilled to see fear etched into people’s features. She’d watch with glee as the sweat beaded down their forehead, as it made an imminent path towards the nose, hiding there until it fell to the ground, easily confused with the tears that flowed freely now. That was when Harley usually hesitated; a hitch on her thoughts as she slammed down her mallet and sent those salty droplets away.

Harley had lived in Gotham her whole life. Gotham’s birds and roosters were shooting guns and occasional ticking bombs. Instead of merrily chirping, there would be ‘ _boom’_. And that was even before she’d tossed her badge away and decided to fight the boys in blue. Being a Gotham citizen took a big amount of courage, and a bigger amount of booze.

In her early, Mistah J era – as she likes to call it – Harley had despised the Gothamites. Thought them as cowards, but in the end of the day all of them were just trying to live their lives the best way they could. Just sometimes a stray bullet would get in the way, or they would become a last-minute getaway driver, something of the sort.

Harley wasn’t heartless; she felt empathy, especially for people.

She’d always loved human beings. She was fascinated by their quirks, and mannerisms, and she loved that every person was different than the other.

 _‘Except Davie,’_ she pondered, bringing a hand to her lips and tilting her head. ‘ _Yeah. Davie’s pretty much the next Schmoe.’_

Her train of thoughts was interrupted by colorful scenery that shocked her eyes and left her mouth agape.

‘ _Beautiful’._

Ivy had painted Gotham in green with her mono-color palette. Just a simple wave of a slender finger and she depicted such a beautiful and sad scenery. And, grasping the edge of her memory, a sultry and deep voice with a hint of sarcasm nurtured Harley.

_“Poison Ivy… a villain.” A tired sigh and a tilt of head. A half smile and a lick of lips. “Are you trying to provoke me, Harley?”_

And with a sigh of her own, one she tried (and failed) to do it with such grace as her memory, she took a step forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told ya I was working on this new chapter. I'm going to clarify some things, kay? I don't usually write stories as long as this one. And the type of stories I like to do involve a lot of poetry and metaphors. So this story is probably going to morph into some kind of small lirical book. I try to get the feeling across, if you know what i mean.


	5. Chapter five

“Don’t touch it!” Flag shouted and Harley’s hand recoiled as if she’d laid a finger on fire by accident.

“Why not!?” the blonde shouted back, looking over her shoulder.

“Walk carefully backwards.” he commanded, beckoning her with a scared hand as if he was the one near the plants. Harley made a sound that implied she was thinking about his order before raising both her arms over her head and falling slowly backwards until she was looking at them upside down.

Flag lifted an angry finger at her. “I don’t want any of your tricks exposing our location, clown. Come here. Now!”

“Oh, geez. Hold your panties, girlie, that’s what I was gonna do.” Harley finally fell entirely backwards and her hands touched the ground to support her body, forming a bridge. Before trudging back to the team, she extended a rascal toe and touched a pouncing tendril, avoiding the looks of Flag and Tatsu entirely. Although Harley knew that Ivy was aware they were here since the moment they approached Robinson Park. Plants whispered and gossiped, and Harley could never forget that.

As Harley was making her way towards the squad her blouse lifted with the gravity, revealing brash six-pack abs. Boomerang wolf-whistled and Harley shot him the bird, twisting herself back to a more natural position once she was far from vegetation.

Deadshot half smiled. “Show off.”

“You’re lucky I’m not Waller, Quinn. Or else your nutty brain cells would be scattered all over the floor right now.” Flag warned her, motioning to the phone he had wrapped around his arm that had photos of each one of them.

Harley made her way towards her abandoned baseball bat on the floor, threw it over her shoulder and strode in the direction of Robinson Park without a word or glance at the captain.

“Wait up, Harley.” Flag softened his voice, making the blonde stop on her tracks. She turned around and quietly joined them. “We still have the element of surprise, don’t wanna ruin that.”

Harley had to contain a snicker at that. ‘ _Joke’s on you, cap. I think the surprise element went downhill a long time ago.’_ if the agitated plants around them were anything to go by; Harley noticed, but again, she was the only one that did. The plants weren’t exactly what one would call ‘agitated’ when it came to Ivy, but they had visibly recoiled at their presence; only trying to reach out to Harley at times Flag wasn’t looking. It had been a while since they’d stopped acting as simple plants and began resembling poised snakes ready to render the intruders. Ivy was already in control, and she was watching the whole scene unfold with the carefulness of a distrusted cat. Harley raised her head to the sky and thanked the universe Ivy was different than her; if Harley were the one to save the redhead, she would’ve fucked up a long time ago.

“It’s time to put plan A to action.” he turned to Harley and started talking directly to her now. “We will stand nearby, and remember,” he tapped his own ear twice. “Waller and I will be listening to everything, so don’t try any funny gigs.”

He stopped and pressed two fingers against his earpiece, and Waller’s voice could be heard over the silence. “Let me talk to her.”

Flag acquiesced uselessly and snatched a tablet out of a giant pocket on his pants. He turned the screen on and Waller’s face immediately appeared, blinding them for a few seconds with its bright light.

“Quinzel, pay attention to what I’m going to tell you.” her solemn voice sobered Harley up and the blonde leaned in confidently. “The nanites inside your neck have gone through some thorough improvements.” Waller tight smiled, mocking Harley’s former boldness. The blonde’s brow creased in confusion.

“What d’ya mean by that?” her high-pitched voice cracked and she tightened her grip around the bat longing to lounge on the digitalized face of that old hag.

“What I mean” she smiled smugly at Harley’s confusion. “, is that if your plant girlfriend tries to so much as touch the device under your skin it will activate the other nanite, in the left side.” Waller pointed vaguely at the left side of Harley’s neck, and the blonde raised a hand to lightly touch it.

A desperate sob escaped her when she remembered they had, indeed, inserted the bomb on the left side of her neck this time, opposed to their last mission, months prior. The idea that she might have two bombs inside her right now seeped incautiously in her thoughts, and a fast and lone tear ran down her cheek.

“You’re lying.” she snorted mirthlessly, resorting to denial. The whole plan she had created to save Ivy slowly dissipated as she came to terms with the new reality that presented itself to her now. She looked around in a last attempt to find a flicker of hope and found that the plants had recoiled considerably and were many feet behind them.

“I wouldn’t worry about the plants if I were you, Dr. Quinzel.” Harley’s credentials were ironically drawled out. “I took care of it, as you can see.” her smile had been replaced with a gloomy scowl. Waller’s suspicions were confirmed when she saw the desperation etched into the clown’s features. At the announcement of this mission the blonde had been too calm, confident almost. Waller had to make sure they wouldn’t fail; and they wouldn’t fail because of a stupid jester. And she’d known Ivy long enough to become familiar with the tricks she pulled. Harley was merely bait, disposable; but she was more important to Ivy than they could ever know.

“I’m always watching.” Waller continued. “Nothing goes by me. You think you’re so smart. But I’m always a step ahead, doctor.” she mocked Harley, a licensed psychiatrist, and also a forgiving doormat. Harley scolded herself for being so smug about the whole situation.

‘ _Of course she’d think this through.’_

Harley covered her own face with her free hand for a moment before resigning herself. “I won’t do it.” she stated. “You can kill me, I don’t care.”

Her voice was reserved, accentless. It was a trained sound, punished so many times that it didn’t slip up anymore. And suddenly she didn’t look so stupid anymore.

Waller snorted. “Don’t be foolish, doctor. You will do as I say and put that brain of yours to work. We all know how well you manipulate people.” she paused and stared directly into Harley’s tired eyes, and Harley immediately knew that Waller was talking about that one time.

‘ _Is it because you love me?’_

Harley scowled at Waller for consciously bringing the memory up, but the thought of how the woman knew about that conversation didn’t come to her.

“That was one time. I promised her I would never do that again.” the squad watched with rapt attention as the cat and mouse fight unfolded, no one caring to disrupt. “She trusts me.”

“And that’s why you’re going to enter Robinson Park, bring her out of that hole in the ground and get her away from the core of the park.” Waller finished. “There is no discussion, Quinn, she’ll be killed either way. This is your chance to say goodbye.” the screen died out and they were left in the dark once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was fun and fast to write. kind of loved it.


	6. Chapter six

“Harley!?” Ivy’s brows rose and her eyes lit up when she caught sight of the pigtailed blonde hair.

Harley took a few careful steps towards the green woman before her, stunned by those eyes, the tenderness in them mastered through time. The pair carried such a heavy weight, and more trust than she deserved, and what an inconvenient time for trust.

Harley didn’t have to take another monumental step, because Ivy ran, and she scrunched the flora on her way, as if forgetting her utmost purpose on this world. And in those seconds, Ivy striding gleefully and her flowing hair looking like blazing fire, she resembled a child, almost like Harley herself. _Human._

Harley opened her arms wide, waiting for the weight to fall on her. And it did. The reencounter of complete opposites, like magnets attracting each other.

Harley hadn’t known what to expect from Pamela, or what her reaction upon seeing her would be. The blonde had been gone for a long time, and she didn’t know if Ivy knew about the squad, or Mistah. J, or anything at all. It was very possible that Ivy had thought she was dead. But the news flew fast in Gotham, and the red may have also had a little talk with Penguin, the worst gossiper in the city.

Harley smiled and sighed at the weight lowering her shoulders, and she couldn’t remember a time before this, or a mission, or any previous moment she had reeaally hugged anybody.

Her ragged shirt soon had stains of salty water on the shoulder, and Harley let her own tears stick to Ivy’s green skin, like sweat. Pam wasn’t a usual crier, but Harley guessed this was a special occasion, like a birthday, but not. Ivy’s arms drew an X on her back, her hands reaching to play with Harley’s pink and blue locks on each pigtail.

“I’ve missed you.” Ivy whispered on her ear, and was it good to listen to that mellow voice again. Pam’s nails carried earth under their shells, and she ran those round ends on the nape of Harley’s neck, waking the blonde baby hairs on the way.

Harley sighed. “I love it when you do that.”

“I know.” and that was that. All sins forgiven. All mistakes forgotten. Ivy didn’t resent anything this time; she just longed.

Pam pressed a butterfly kiss to the slope that adjoined Harley’s neck and shoulder, and hugged her tighter, whispering to her skin: “Everything is going to be alright, Harls. Don’t worry.”

And then the lions’ mane moved again and Harley felt another kiss, laid on the high of her neck. It was precise, calculated, and Ivy didn’t let go of her, holding her for dear life.

It would be the both of them, like always. Ivy would say goodbye to this cruel world in the arms of her lover, and Waller would laugh at the remainder of their dead bodies, such a poetic, pathetic way to die.

But they weren’t going to die, because when had Ivy ever failed due to incompetence of her own?

Ivy didn’t detangle herself, she just hugged Harley tighter and cleared the way to the faded red X’s drawn on the blonde’s skin. Both sides, she had heard very well.

Quickly, two poised green snakes aimed on their targets, and pounced on Harley’s neck. A split second and a surgical cut and the nanites were thrown away, and Ivy could hear the ticking explosive clocks before they disappeared amongst the Gotham buildings. Hopefully the nanites would reach Waller’s or Batman’s whereabouts.

Harley hardly moved during the process. She just raised a hand to ghost over the place where she swore she felt a mosquito bite, and briefly wondered if Ivy kept any insect repellents inside that cave in the ground.

“Harley, I removed the explosives.” that’s all Ivy had the time to say before her eyes glued to something behind the jester.

And then everything changed drastically quickly.

Harley felt a firm hand clasp hers, and ran along with Ivy as the redhead ushered them to her lair. Adrenaline rushed through Harley’s veins as she heard the bullets flying next to her ears, missing her head for a fraction, and so she ran on a beeline, trusting Deadshot not to shoot her.

Harley’s heart hammered in her chest and echoed inside her ears like a drum, and the feel of (after months) finally doing something risky took home inside of her and she couldn’t help but release a maniacal laugh. But as soon as she saw the telltale black cape following them her smile turned into a deep frown and she gritted her teeth, hissing like she was in pain.

“Ya knew bats would be here?!” she shouted to Ivy louder than the screams behind them, Harley’s sweaty brow creasing in confusion.

“Jump inside the hole, Harley.” Ivy rushed her. 

“No! I always miss the fun.” she knew it was the worst time to be petty, but she wouldn’t stay in that crumpled and dirty hole and let Ivy fight the squad AND Batman alone.

“Ok.” The green woman acquiesced calmly. “Stay here then.”

Then, Ivy took a vial from her friggin’ hair and held it in front of her, tightly. She joined both legs together and raised her head, an effect she had mastered to look taller and ahead of the situation, just in case her sole presence didn’t already suffice that. The grass on the ground grew fast by Ivy’s command, and, for brief seconds, Harley mistook the sound for pouring rain, boggled with the feel of her limbs being tickled.

“Stop!” Flag pointed his gun at them, which made Harley wonder every time why they didn’t just shoot. Ivy seemed to find his claim to be mirthful, as she drawled a deep laugh and put a hand on the curve of her own hip.

“Uhmm.” she purred, almost moaned. “This gentleman has quite a way with words; don’t you agree, Harley?” she referred to the jester without taking her eyes off the man with the gun.

Harley was ecstatic, she finally had an opportunity to vex that annoying joe that ordered her around like she had no volition of her own, or like she was stupid. Like everyone else did.

“Oh, yeah!” her shrill voice cracked. “We been through some fun times togetha, right Ricky?” she cocked her head and smiled coyly, silently wishing to have a mallet here with her so she could look more threatening.

“This is over, Ivy. Stand down.” Batman commanded, ignoring Harley altogether.

He stepped ahead of the squad, coming face to face with the green woman. His scowl was the same, but he kept a clear distance from Ivy and she couldn’t be more flattered.

 _‘See! Batman is putty in my hands, idiots.’_ she mentally cursed the rouges.

And then, at the corner of the scene was Waller, and it all clicked for Ivy.

_‘They are working together. . . What is he so afraid of? Does he think I’m going to spill the acid in the Gotham canal point?’_

Ivy scoffed derisively. “I’d never pegged you as the scared type, Batman.”

Batman’s expression remained the same.

Ivy smiled. “Actually. . now that I’m thinking about it. . .”

In a swift move, he tried to reach the vial, but Ivy instantly had his limbs trapped in strong vines, and he stumbled a bit, trying to regain his balance lost by the momentum. Her babies ensnared the rest of the group, which had immediately shut up at the sight of Gotham’s vigilante. Ivy threw Boomerang’s, Deadshot’s and Flag’s weapons away, the sound of metal hitting the ground muffled by the soft grass, then bounded Katana’s hand tightly, so she wouldn’t be able to move her sword around.

“Plant bitch!” Boomer spat on the ground and squirmed wildly. “It takes a work day to spruce up these bloody boomerangs.”

Pam made a quick hand gesture and his mouth was covered with leaves, precluding his speech.

“Stole my idea.” Croc growled from the back, prompting Deadshot to snort.

“Come here now, Waller.” Pam called the other woman from the shadows. “I am willing to make a deal if you talk to me.”

Straight to the boss, Waller was the mind of this whole mission, and the woman was no fool. Amanda stepped up, coming to view at her own pace. Overbearing at even the smallest details, her imposing presence made their dynamic shift, and with that, even the Batman looked like some stupid dress up. She regarded Ivy with crossed hands behind her back, as if she was unafraid of what could possible happen to her in a green field with, in rude terms, Mother Nature herself.

“Long time no see, Isley.” Waller said as she finally came to a stop in front of the green woman; in front of Batman.

“It’s Doctor Isley. PhD.” Ivy started automatically. “What would you win of this? Besides money, of course.”

“Tell me, Isley.” she drawled out, ignoring Pam’s first request. “Is there anything else other than money?”

Ivy soon realized that she wouldn’t have this one, so she was about to change tactics when Waller spoke again.

“Hand over the acid.” she commanded, moving her arms to her sides now.

Ivy took a high heeled step forward and smiled seductively. “Or else . . .”

Waller looked at Harley straight in the eye. “Or else Harley may meet with her grinning wacko in hell.”

The blonde flinched and noticed how Ivy didn’t show the slightest bit of confusion at the information that the Joker was dead. But Harley was focusing on the wrong things.

“You are aware that I removed both of the explosives. . .” Ivy said and it wasn’t a question per se, but the redhead tiptoed around the matter and it was clear that she was in doubt.

“Oh, I’m sure you did.” Waller answered intently and moved her right arm quite brusquely, so Ivy quickly wrapped the other woman in vines, so tightly that she wasn’t able to even breathe properly, let alone press any sort of button.

“Did you know about this?” she whispered to Harley without taking her eyes from Waller.

“No.” Harley answered cautiously, finally realizing the implications of the whole conversation. She couldn’t remember another bomb being implanted, Waller was almost certainly bluffing.

“Oh, Quinn. You certainly don’t remember what happened during your breaks, am I right?” Waller tilted her head so she could look in Harley’s eyes directly.

In Belle Reve, they had dosed her a few times during procedures out of the cell. They would lead her through the corridor, and when she was about to say something, everything would go black and then she would wake up in her cell once again, unharmed apart from the dizziness from the drugs. And she had asked the guards about it, because that had never happened in Arkham or any other institution she had gone to. And the guards repeated the same answer every time. _Chill, clown. It’s just meds._

Suddenly, Harley felt every breeze, each passing second and became aware of the sounds of the park acutely. Maybe those ticking clocks she had begun to hear some time ago were actually several activated bombs scattered all through her body; ready to explode. She couldn’t have got madder, surely.

“You’re lying.” Ivy stated calmly and her regal position intensified, appearing intentional at this point.

“Ask your partner there. Maybe it’s a trick of the light, but she looks a little pale from here.” Waller answered, gesturing slightly to Harley.

“Harley, do y-----

“I don’t remember.” the blonde whispered thinly. “They dosed me, I blacked out. It was just meds. My meds.” she repeated the same phrase that currently wreaked such confusion in her mind, and searched quickly through her memories for any trace of ‘nanite’ or ‘bomb’ formerly mentioned.

Ivy tightened Waller’s bounds and narrowed her eyes, trying to take control of the gradual panic that was taking over her system.

“I just have to move my finger, Isley.” Waller threatened; mistaking Ivy’s squeezed eyes for cynicism. “And if you want Harley to become a brain dead - that is, if she already isn’t - just keep moving your _precious_ _babies_.”

The plants immediately stilled.

Ivy’s mind churned, trying to think of a new solution that didn’t ruin her former plan of keeping Harley _and_ the acid safe. And it would take longer for her to kill Waller in any way, than it would for Waller to press the button.

“Walk slowly towards me” Ivy drawled out. “, and if you so much as move your hand, you’ll suffer one of the most painful and slow deaths there is, and I’ll make the effort to make it last even longer than the average human body can endure.” as Ivy explained, the grip of the plants steadily slackened, dropping Waller on the ground once again. “We are making a trade here. You will handle me the device, and call upon your team to remove any explosive from Harley’s body. If necessary I’ll take you to a safe house and your team will carry out the removal under my supervision.” Ivy conditioned, and Waller took two careful steps forward, holding the button in an open palm.

“That won’t be necessary.” Waller stated, and Ivy extended a hand to receive the device. Knowing she had the upper hand, Amanda placed the button on Ivy’s green hand. Pamela nodded and gave the vial to her.

“The machine is down there, along with the formula and my studies.” Pam gestured to the hole carelessly. “Make good use of it.”

Waller signaled to the team hiding behind the bushes and they came directly to Harley and quickly did the removal of the last nanite left.

Ivy waved in Batman’s direction and the vines suffocating him relaxed. He immediately ran past the redhead and jumped inside the hole along with some guards that were more careful to at least use a flashlight upon entering her lair.

Harley squirmed as the team of surgeons squeezed a heap of her skin and pressed the needle of the syringe, applying local anesthesia to make the removal of the device painless. They used a proper gun to take out the explosive as Ivy monitored the whole scene with trained eyes and crossed arms.

“Don’t worry those pretty features, Ivy; your better half will be ready to go in an instant.” Waller said sardonically, behind her.

“Waller. . .” Ivy turned around and regarded her. “I have worked with you in the past, and you should know better than to underestimate me.” there was a glint in her eyes as she said it, and Waller raised her head higher to face the challenge. But as soon as it began, it was gone, because Ivy pivoted and strode towards the lone Harley that looked so small amidst everything.

Waller heard the grass shifting behind her, and turned around, prepared to see her Task Force x, tired and moaning and ready for another mission. But unfortunately, the people tightly bound by the cunning flora were Flag and Tatsu, and her own team of surgeons, and the rest of the guards that waited for her signal to counterattack and ambush Ivy before she left. And, when Waller turned to curse the eco-terrorist, livid and ready to burst her vocal chords, there was nothing there; just blooming flora, and blooming flora.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok. this may be the end. and if this is the end, then it's a shitty end, because clearly this took another turn which I wasn't prepared for. I will probably just stick to one-shots from now on. LOL


	7. Chapter seven - epilogue

“I’ll miss you guys.” Harley pouted, brow scrunching a little as sadness tinted her senses. “Maybe we can create a group chat or somethin’, like getting matching tattoos. Look! I already got mine.” she pointed at a black patch in her inner arm, prompting Ivy to squeeze her eyes and raise an eyebrow as she caught sight of the scrappy handwriting she recognized as Harley’s, if not a little shakier than usual.

 _SKWAD._ Indeed small, but certainly not invisible.

“You spelled it incorrectly…” Ivy drawled out, quietly wondering if the mistake was intentional.

Harley’s brows shot up and a toothy grin took over her features. “Exactly! Great idea, huh?”

Deadshot somewhat craned his neck to see the tats before slowly shaking his head. “You’re nuts.”

“Oh, come on, cowboy! Y’know I’ve done much worse.” with a self-depreciating laugh, Harley shot her eyes closed and fiddled with her spiky metal bracelet under the table. But as quickly as her mood vacillated, it did again and she was already bouncing in her seat, changing the subject with an ease only she could manage.

Ivy’s mind drifted again, and she regarded Harley with half lidded eyes which implied she was in deep thought.

Ivy discovered, not recently, that this is where she would find Harley the most comfortable, when she was around people she liked, having easy chit-chat. Her eyes would light up and she’d listen and talk at the edge of her chair, senselessly stuffing food into her mouth and laughing without scruples. She knew that Harley had chosen former profession out of pure love for people. Apparently, the jester’s hope in humanity was endless, and Ivy wondered from time to time how she ended up with someone with so different than her.

Ivy didn’t chime in the conversation for the rest of the night, speaking only when talked to, which was mostly Harley trying to integrate her with the squad; she appreciated the gesture, but it was unnecessary, as she knew to have fun in her own way. And next thing she knew, Harley was poking her arm relentlessly, prodding the redhead out of her reverie.

“C’mon, Red. The bar is almost closing.”

Deadshot stood up and strolled to the entrance alone, letting Croc and the women at the table.

“Ya ain’t comin’?” Harley turned to Croc, who had his arms lazily thrown around the chair’s back. He shook his head and grunted in lieu of a verbal response. Harley nodded to him and laced her fingers with Ivy’s, going directly to the front door.

Reaching outside, the chilly breeze played with Harley’s blonde tendrils, and the jester sharply ducked her head in order to get the hair out of her view. The second sway almost hit Ivy and the redhead stilled her walk, pulling Harley back with their joined hands to face her.

“Be a little patient.” Her velvety voice served almost as a blanket to Harley, and the jester closed her eyes, lips stretching forward in a pucker up, expecting something entirely different than what she received.

Ivy reached to the back of Harley’s head, gathering all the blonde locks she could manage, and put them through an elastic leafy ring. She finished the bun with a slight pull and grabbed Harley’s hand, mindless of the flabbergasted expression in the other woman’s face.

“Where’dja find this.” Harley pointed to the band tying her hair with a confused expression.

Ivy smiled coyly, bringing a finger to her own green lips. “A magician never reveals her tricks.”

Harley’s brows both shot up, and from their slight tremble Pam knew that only one of them had been told to move. “What kinda magician are ya?”

At this point, Pam was mostly amused, calm like a pet dog, but she winked anyway and half closed her eyelids. It always worked. “I don’t know. You tell me.” She finished each phrase with a warble and Harley didn’t even blink, she just blurted out “You’re a hypnotizer.”

“What makes you think that?” Pam shot back.

“I’ve seen ya turning people into zombies a lotsa times.” Harley explained surely and Ivy side-glanced at her before sighing.

“You lost your chance.”

“What!?”

“You could have totally thrown a cheesy line in there.” Pam could barely contain her laughter, the sound infectiously tinting gradually tinting phrase, in rushed breathes and squeezed words.

Harley tsked herself and somewhat hopped, taking a belated cue. “Ya didn’t let me finish. Yer a hypnotizer; every time I look at ya my brain shuts down.” Harley grinned, proud of herself, and Pam smiled again.

“Surely that can’t be healthy. And it’s hypnotist.” Pam answered, dropping a quick kiss on the tip of Harley’s nose. “I loved it anyway.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it guys, finished and wrapped up.

**Author's Note:**

> so long i wanted to do a suicide squad fic. Yes!


End file.
